First race of US Arabian Triple Jewel, Amethyst Jewel in Houston
3 March 2017, Houston, Texas, USA ~ Favorite, Paddys Day, makes a bid for the 2017 debut in the US with the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup-Grade 1 Amethyst Jewel at Sam Houston Race Park, Houston, Texas on Saturday, 4 March.
The Scott Powell-trained 6-year-old and winner of the 2016 USA Triple Jewell is again expected to start on a winning note in the Houston competition, sponsored by the HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival.
With 16 wins and 5 second-place runs in 23 starts, Paddys Day is the reigning US Horse of the Year (HOTY) and the two-time winner of the Festival’s Triple Jewel carrying an additional bonus of $150,000 for high points in the three competitions.
Owned by the Quarter Moon Ranch LLC, the Burning Sand son under jockey Deshawn Parker will run in Saturday’s 7-furlong contest which carries a prize fund of $45,000 with 14 runners.
The others to watch out in this Grade 1 race are Easter Man under Ivan Arellano, Thess Is Awesome under Travis Wales, Quick Sand AA under Adrian Ramos, and Sand Victor under David Cabrera. The others in the fray are CR Ardiente under Brooke Stillion, Es Mi Cielo under Cassandra Naupac, Jess Is On Fire under Chya Johnstone, Twice Rich under Garber Pivaral, Lil Dude AA under Sasha Risenhoover, Quick And Rich under Kirsten Swan, RB Open Fire under Ernesto Valdez-Jimenez, Raineing Sand under Quincy Hamilton and Lazur Hess under Jacob Radosevich.
Ten in fray in HH Sheikha Fatima Ladies World Championship
Saturday’s meeting also features the seven furlong Festival’s HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship race over seven furlongs.
This contest for fillies and mares is also a contest for lady jockeys from around the world and ten of them will be vying to book a berth in the November finals of the HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship in Abu Dhabi.
French rider Solange Gourdain will be on Dartyn Kriss Swa, Denmark’s Lisa Lindbjerg on Ruby AA, Germany’s Lille-Marie Engels on Pams Masquerade, Italian Ilaria Saggiomo on Ivory Shores, Belgium’s Anne Engels on Risky Red, UK’s Emma Todd on RB Kinkie, American Zoe Valvo, on TM Maddamee, and Norway’s Frida Valle Skar on Big Girls Are Better. The other two jockeys are Spain’s Beatriz Alonso and Bianca Willemenstijn of The Netherlands and the two horses are Miss Paradise and Dream Pearl.
RB Kinkie looks the one to beat while Ruby AA, Dream Pearl and Pams Masquerade are strong contenders.
“The US plays a very important role in the promotion of Purebred Arabian horses and we have seen this with two American-bred horses winning the Festival’s pride and the world’s richest race for Purebred Arabians – the Euros 1.2 million Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Jewel Crown (Group 1) – over the last two editions,” said Ms. Lara Sawaya, Executive Director of the HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival, Chairperson of the International Federation of Horse Racing Academies (IFHRA) and Chairperson of Ladies & Apprentice Racing Committees in the International Federation of Arabian Horse Racing Authorities (IFAHR).
“The Sam Houston Park has always been a regular stop for the Festival and the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup-Grade 1 (Amethyst Jewel – the 1st Leg of the Triple Jewel) has attracted a strong field headed by Paddys Day. The lady jockeys are also raring to go in this US leg of the HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies World Championship after the cancellation of last week’s contest on the White Turf in Switzerland. We can expect very exciting contests in both the races,” Ms. Sawaya added.
The HH Sheikh Mansoor Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Global Arabian Horse Flat Racing Festival is sustained by the Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority and coordinated by Abu Dhabi Sports Council, with National Feed and Flour Production and Marketing Co. LLC as associate sponsors, The National Archives as the official partner and Emirates airline as the official carriers, in cooperation with Emirates Racing Authority, IFAHR, Emirates Arabian Horse Society, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, General Authority of Youth and Sports Welfare and sponsored by Al Aweer Stables, Ayadii LLC, Global United Veterinary Services LLC, Bloom, Petromal, Rise General Trading Co. LLC, Hayatna, Wathba Stallions, Abu Dhabi Falconers Club, Emirates Falconers Club, Mohamed Bin Zayed Falconry and Desert Physiognomy School, Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC), Al Awani General Enterprises, Kabale, Omeir Travels, Dr Nader Saab Switzerland, Laboratories Fadia Karam Cosmetics, YAS Channel, Racing Post, Paris Turf, Al Wathba Centre, the UAE’s General Women’s Union, The Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, the HH Sheikha Fatima Bint Mubarak Ladies Sports Academy, Abu Dhabi International Hunting and Equestrian Exhibition 2017, Abu Dhabi Equestrian Club, Eastern Mangroves Suites-Abu Dhabi by Jannah, Anantara Eastern Mangroves Spa and Resort.
~ end
File photo of Paddys Day ridden by Kelsi Purcell winning the Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Cup – Amethyst Jewel, a Grade 1 race at the Sam Houston Race Park in Texas (2016).